Marin Administrator Faces Child Molestation Charges: Report

MARIN COUNTY, CA — A former Marin County school superintendent arrested earlier this year on suspicion of child molestation is facing misdemeanor charges, The Marin Independent Journal reports.

Robert Raines, 66, was arrested June 8 on suspicion of committing lewd acts with a child under the age of 14 according to the sheriff's office. He was subsequently released on bail according to the report.

Raines held the Shoreline Unified School District's administrative top post before stepping down in late June. The district serves students in west Marin and Sonoma counties.

The lesser charge is for someone who unlawfully annoys or molests a person under 18 years of age culminated a five-week review of the case conducted by the district attorney’s office according to the report.

He had been on administrative leave since June 1, when the authorities received a report of the allegations, the Sheriff's Office said.

Raines, who lives in Petaluma, is scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 11 according to the report.

An attorney representing Raines the longtime North Bay educator told the IJ that Raines denies the charges against him.

“Mr. Raines looks forward to his full exoneration,” Charles Dresow told the news outlet.

“He was arrested for a felony he did not commit after a rushed and incomplete investigation. He is innocent of the misdemeanor filed and denies all of the allegations against him.”

A school resource officer was involved in the investigation, the Sheriff's Office said around the time of Raines’ arrest.

The Sheriff's Office said in the news release that no further information about this case would be made immediately available.

The Marin County Office of Education notified authorities and put Raines on administrative leave when the allegations surfaced, Superintendent of Schools Mary Jane Burke said in a statement.

"The health, safety and well-being of all of our students is our most important priority," Burke said.

"It is the mandate of all schools to follow all relevant laws with regard to any allegations of child abuse. The district took swift and immediate action notifying the Marin County Sheriff's Office and placed Mr. Raines on leave."

Anyone with information about this case is asked to call Detective Patton at (415) 473-7265.

Read more in The Marin Independent Journal